“How Great Shall Be Your Joy”
Doctrine and Covenants 18:14–16
14 Wherefore, you are called to cry repentance unto this people.
15 And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!
16 And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!
Elder Robert D. Hales said:
“To labor for the conversion of one’s self and others is a noble and joyful task.
“‘And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father!
“‘And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!’ (D&C 18:15–16).
“Have you ever pondered the sorrow of losing one and what sadness there must be when many are lost? That is what the Lord feels. It is what our prophet feels. And that is what I hope that you and I can feel, that we can show a determination to nurture those who have experienced the joys of feeling the Spirit, being baptized, and gaining a testimony and who are in the process of overcoming trials and tribulations and achieving an enduring conversion that will last eternally.
“Amid the busyness of our day and concerns of what we are trying to accomplish in our individual lives, and within our families, we sometimes are not aware of the needs of the new member who has just entered the kingdom. As we are committed to be by the side of each new member, could we walk with them along the straight and narrow path that leads to the temple, going with them to the temple so that in our friendship we can have joy and rejoice with them as we move together towards eternal life?”
(“When Thou Art Converted, Strengthen Thy Brethren,” Ensign, May 1997, 81–82.)
